A Fox's Whisper

7: Ҝ卂乙ㄩ卄卂

My time traveling with Akio Haru was...eventful, to say the least. He'd told me that he was a 'monster magnet,' and after a few days around him, I could see why. Whether we were sleeping, waiting out a storm, or even passing through a village, monsters would always seem to find us. Not only that, but I always felt the presence of yokai and spirits around us. If it was because they were watching us or bringing about our ill luck, I couldn't be sure. But they were there.

The one thing that kept us from getting killed was that the wind always shifted with the coming of evil, such as the monsters that plagued us. It gave me ample time to prepare for any skirmishes we'd endure, and we always managed to escape.

It was for that reason that I noticed with Haru and Legion's arrival, the wind shifted from an easterly sea breeze to a westerly one. It was a subtle change, but the wind carries just such warnings if you take the time to notice.

We waited for the better half of an hour before Inari stood and said, "I think I'd like to see what these pirates are actually doing." She brushed her skirt and tossed her hair over her shoulder. "There's no use sitting around and not knowing anything about them."

"I'll go with you," I offered. Haru waved goodbye and then proceeded to scratch Pochi behind the ears. Legion simply watched Inari with a stony countenance that she ignored.

I thought Inari might protest at my tagging along, but she merely shrugged carelessly and headed off down the beach in the direction of the pirates. I trailed after her, looking to the sky. It was a soft blue and fluffy white clouds hung frozen in the air, almost like they were trapped in time.

"I hope you can trust them," Inari said once we were out of earshot.

It took me a moment to realize she was referring to Haru and Legion. I laughed a little. "You hope I trust them? What of you?"

She glanced at me over her shoulder, her eyes as blank as her expression. "That's a rather ridiculous question, no?"

I supposed it was, seeing as Inari trusted everyone about as much as a fish does a hungry shark.
"I have no reason to distrust Haru. And although he's...strange...I have no reason to distrust Legion." Although he did make my skin crawl slightly and set my entire body on edge, I didn't believe it to be right to jump to any conclusions.

She slowed a little so that we were walking side by side. "Legion...doesn't seem right," she murmured. Then her tone hardened. "Although you must think me paranoid."

"You have your reasons," said I.

Inari let out a strangled noise that sounded like a cross between a sigh and a snarl. "How??" She demanded, stopping in her tracks.

I blinked. "How what?"

"How do you trust everyone so easily?! None of us have given you any grounds to."

"You've already told me you had no wish to kill me anymore. What else is there for me to discount you for?"

She flushed, looking down.

"The way I see it, judging someone from your immediate presumptions is one of the worst things you can do. There are some who are born liars, and you must take that into account, but you can't simply decide who someone is because it's what you wish them to be. It's cruel."

Her golden eyes filled with something akin to a distant hollowness. "Is...is that...why..." She trailed off, saying the last part of her sentence so quietly I couldn't hear her. I stepped a little closer.

"What did you say?"

She finally met my gaze, and she looked so very tired I wasn't sure how she was staying awake. "Is that why you're kind to me?" She asked.